Full name John Ernest Emburey
Born August 20, 1952, Peckham, London
Current age 68 years 156 days
Major teams England, Berkshire, Middlesex, Northamptonshire, Western Province
Nickname Embers, Ernie, Knuckle
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm offbreak
Other Coach, Commentator
Height 6 ft 2 in
Education Peckham Manor Secondary School
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 64 | 96 | 20 | 1713 | 75 | 22.53 | 4811 | 35.60 | 0 | 10 | 195 | 6 | 34 | 0 |
ODIs | 61 | 45 | 10 | 501 | 34 | 14.31 | 664 | 75.45 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 6 | 19 | 0 |
First-class | 513 | 644 | 130 | 12021 | 133 | 23.38 | 7 | 55 | 459 | 0 | ||||
List A | 536 | 355 | 110 | 3865 | 50 | 15.77 | 0 | 2 | 181 | 0 |
Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 64 | 103 | 15391 | 5646 | 147 | 7/78 | 7/105 | 38.40 | 2.20 | 104.7 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
ODIs | 61 | 61 | 3425 | 2346 | 76 | 4/37 | 4/37 | 30.86 | 4.10 | 45.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 513 | 112862 | 41958 | 1608 | 8/40 | 26.09 | 2.23 | 70.1 | 72 | 12 | |||
List A | 536 | 26399 | 16811 | 647 | 5/23 | 5/23 | 25.98 | 3.82 | 40.8 | 23 | 3 | 0 |
Test debut | England v New Zealand at Lord's, Aug 24-28, 1978 scorecard |
Last Test | England v West Indies at Manchester, Jul 27-30, 1995 scorecard |
Test statistics | |
ODI debut | Australia v England at Sydney, Jan 14, 1980 scorecard |
Last ODI | Sri Lanka v England at Moratuwa, Mar 20, 1993 scorecard |
ODI statistics | |
First-class span | 1973 - 1997 |
List A span | 1975 - 2000 |
Bat & Bowl | Team | Opposition | Ground | Match Date | Scorecard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2/37 | PCA XI | v ACA Masters | London | 25 Jul 2013 | Other T20 |
0/16 | Eng Masters | v Ind Masters | Bridgetown | 9 Nov 2010 | Other T20 |
0, 2/22 | Eng Masters | v Ind Masters | Bridgetown | 7 Nov 2010 | Other T20 |
0/30, 7* | Eng Masters | v SL Masters | Bridgetown | 6 Nov 2010 | Other T20 |
1/25 | Eng Masters | v WI Masters | Bridgetown | 5 Nov 2010 | Other T20 |
2/33 | Eng Masters | v SA Masters | Bridgetown | 5 Dec 2009 | Other T20 |
18, 0/31 | Eng Masters | v SA Masters | Bridgetown | 4 Dec 2009 | Other T20 |
1/32 | Eng Masters | v SL Masters | Bridgetown | 3 Dec 2009 | Other T20 |
1/35 | Eng Masters | v WI Masters | Bridgetown | 30 Nov 2009 | Other T20 |
4/40 | M.C.C. | v Minor C | Lord's | 20 Aug 2009 | Other OD |
In the era before Shane Warne when spin bowling was on its uppers, John Emburey was perhaps the best offspinner in the world, which did not say much. He was tall with a classically looping action, and capable of getting huge amounts of bounce and away-drift. But his qualities were submerged amid the grim battles slow bowlers faced in the 1980s: uncongenial pitches and one-day cricket, which forced him to become primarily negative and defensive. He improvised more in his batting, in which he managed to score runs while infuriating bowlers by ignoring both footwork and backlift. Always a willing talker and theorist, he was an excellent senior pro and a promising coach (though he was fired by Northamptonshire before returning home to Middlesex). Over-promoted to England captain for two Tests amid general chaos in 1988, he was fired as capriciously as he was appointed. Emburey was the only cricketer to go on both (1981-82 and 1989-90) England rebel tours to South Africa, and was instantly forgiven both times, which says much about attitudes at Lord's but something about the general esteem for his qualities.
Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1984